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Acts 21:26-32  TROUBLE FOR PAUL AT JERUSALEM

Introduction:

	If I had left the words “for Paul” out of this title and just said, 
“Trouble At Jerusalem” that title would apply to our time.  But by adding the 
words “for Paul” we focus upon the time spoken of in our text.  
	
I.  The warning given by James and the elders of the Jerusalem church and the 
plan 
     which they suggested for heading of the trouble

	Paul has returned from Macedonia and Achaia to Jerusalem with a huge 
offering for the Christian Jews at Jerusalem and the surrounding area.  In our 
previous text Paul was greeted very warmly by James, who is believed to be the 
pastor of the Jerusalem church, and by the elders of that church.  But even 
though they give Paul a warm welcome, they warn him that there were thousands of 
Christian Jews in Judea who would shortly be coming to Jerusalem to observe the 
feast days who would not be friendly toward him.  In fact, these Christian Jews 
were downright angry with Paul because they had received false reports about him 
from the mission field where Paul had been working.  	The false reports claimed 
that Paul taught that all Jews who lived among Gentiles should forsake the Law 
of Moses and that they should not have their children circumcised as the Law of 
Moses required.  
	James and the elders warned Paul that these Christian Jews would be 
watching for him to show up for the feast days and that they would make trouble 
for him.  James and the elders of the Jerusalem church suggested a plan to Paul 
which they thought might head off the trouble and prevent it from ever 
happening.  There were four members of the Jerusalem church who had made a 
religious vow at the Jewish temple.  The time period specified in the vow was 
about to come to a close and they would be required under the Law of Moses to go 
to the temple for ceremonial cleansing and to make certain sacrificial 
offerings.  James and the elders of the church suggested to Paul that he join 
with those four Christian brethren in the ceremonial cleansing and in the making 
of the sacrifices.  This would make it evident to all that Paul did not oppose 
the Law of Moses, that he himself sought to follow its teachings and that the 
rumors which they had heard were false.  

II.  Paul’s effort to head of the trouble 

	V. 26, “Then Paul took the men, and the next day purifying himself with 
them entered into the temple, to signify the accomplishment of the days of 
purification, until that an offering should be offered for every one of them.”  
Paul took the advise of James and the elders.  The very next day he accompanied 
the four brethren who were under the vow and went to the temple to join in with 
them in the ceremonial washing and cleansing which the Law of Moses prescribed.  
We will see in the next verse that he did this not on just one day, but seven 
days in a row.  This gave opportunity for many of the Jewish Christian brethren 
to see him following the ceremonial procedures required by the Law of Moses and 
to let them know that Paul was not opposed to the Mosaic law.  I can just 
imagine that this was the chief topic of discussion among the Jewish Christians 
who had been so upset with Paul.  
	By the time that the seventh day arrived, the last day in which the 
ceremonial cleansing was required arrived, the Christian Jews which had been so 
angry with Paul must have been thoroughly convinced that they had been 
misinformed.  It would seem at that point that the plan suggested by James and 
the elders had worked and it did.  Well, --- it almost did.  It did as far as 
the Jewish Christian brethren were concerned.  But it did not prevent trouble 
from another source from happening.  

III.  Trouble anyway 

	The good counsel given by James and the elders and Paul’s willingness to 
follow that counsel did not prevent trouble from coming for Paul.  It came 
anyway.  You see, not only were there many Christian Jews at Jerusalem for those 
feast days, but there were many more unsaved Jews at Jerusalem.  It appears that 
it was the unsaved Jews who would now cause trouble for Paul.  These were 
probably some of the same people who had been spreading the false rumor about 
Paul in the first place.  
	It was on toward the end of that seventh day of ceremonial cleansing that 
the trouble started.  V. 27, “And when the seven days were almost ended, the 
Jews which were of Asia, when they saw him in the temple, stirred up all the 
people, and laid hands on him.”  Not only did the Christian Jews of Judea have 
opportunity to see Paul in the courtyard of the temple receiving the ceremonial 
cleansing, but Jews who were not Christians who had become Paul’s enemies out on 
the mission field also saw him.  They had become angry at Paul when he had gone 
into their synagogues telling them that Gentiles could be saved without being 
circumcised and coming under the Law of Moses.  They had made trouble for Paul 
back there in those Jewish synagogues and in those Gentile cities.  They make 
trouble again here in Jerusalem.  
	These trouble makers were not the Christian Jews of Judea who were making 
trouble for Paul.  Neither were there Christian Jews from Asia making trouble 
for Paul.  The Jews from Asia who made the trouble were Jews who had heard Paul 
present the gospel message in Jewish synagogues out on the mission field, but 
they had rejected Paul’s message.  they had rejected Paul’s message about 
salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ..  They believed that one had 
to keep the Law of Moses in order to go to heaven. They had cried out against 
Paul out on the mission field among the Gentiles and they cried out against him 
now among the Jews at Jerusalem. 
	V. 28, “Crying out, Men of Israel, help...”  The trouble broke out all of 
a sudden.  These men saw Paul in the courtyard of the temple and they screamed 
out for help in capturing Paul as though he were a dangerous criminal.  They 
screamed out their false accusations against Paul.   They were the same 
accusations which they had earlier brought back to Jerusalem and Judea.  Listen 
to what they said.  (V. 28), “...This is the man...”  In other words, “This is 
the man that we have been telling you about.”  “This is the man, that teacheth 
all [men] every where against the people...”  He speaks and teaches against the 
Jewish people.  (V. 28), “...and the law...”  He speaks and teaches people not 
to keep the Law of Moses.”  (V. 28), “...and this place...”  They said, “He 
preached and taught against this place --- the temple.  He taught against the 
temple.” 
	 (V. 28), “...and further brought Greeks also into the temple, and hath 
polluted this holy place.”  Suddenly their accusations take on a much more 
serious nature. They falsely accused Paul of bringing Greeks into the temple 
courtyard.  That is, they said that Paul had brought Greeks into the courtyard 
in which only Jews were allowed.  There was a courtyard in which Gentiles were 
allowed to come.  Greeks were allowed into the Gentile courtyard if they were 
circumcised, but under no circumstances were they allowed into the Hebrew 
courtyard.  It was a capital offense for a Gentile to enter into that courtyard.  
They accused Paul of bringing a Gentile into that courtyard which was not true.  
	V. 29, “(For they had seen before with him in the city Trophimus an 
Ephesian, whom they supposed that Paul had brought into the temple.)”  They had 
earlier seen Trophimus with Paul out on the streets of the city and they jumped 
to the conclusion that Paul must have brought him also into the Hebrew 
courtyard.  It appears that they did not deliberately tell a lie against Paul.  
It was just that they were so blinded by their hatred for him that they were 
willing to assume the worst to be true about him.  It is also interesting to 
note that they greatly exaggerated the facts.  They had seen only one Greek with 
Paul out on the streets of the city and now they assume that Paul has Greeks 
(plural) with him in the Hebrew courtyard of the temple.  
	Without considering the accuracy or inaccuracy of their accusations 
against Paul the Jews who heard the accusations quickly spread the news.  
Someone ran out of the gates of the temple spreading the news out on the streets 
of Jerusalem.  V. 30, “And all the city was moved, and the people ran together: 
and they took Paul, and drew him out of the temple: and forthwith the doors were 
shut.”  As soon as the crowd carried Paul outside the temple grounds the gate of 
the temple was closed.  Perhaps this was to prevent the tumult from re-entering 
and having a riot break out within the temple grounds.  Perhaps it was because 
they felt that the presence of a Greek within the Hebrew courtyard had polluted 
the temple and that it must have a ceremonial cleansing before opening the doors 
again.  
	But the point is that Paul was now in serious trouble.  The people assumed 
Paul to be guilty of a capital offense and they were in no mood to tolerate such 
and offense.  They fully intended to kill the Apostle Paul.  They would, of 
course, carry him not only out of the temple, but also out of the city, itself.  
They would not want their city to be polluted with his blood.  

IV.  Roman soldiers to the rescue

	V. 31, “And as they went about to kill him, tidings came unto the chief 
captain of the band, that all Jerusalem was in an uproar.”  This speaks, of 
course, about the captain of the Roman soldiers who were in Jerusalem for the 
purpose of keeping down any kind of uproar or riot which the Jews might have.   
	The chief captain moved quickly.  V. 32, “Who immediately took soldiers 
and centurions, and ran down unto them: and when they saw the chief captain and 
the soldiers, they left beating of Paul.”  The captain and his soldiers arrived 
just in the nick of time.  The people were already beating Paul.  Luke doe not 
tell us how badly injured.  The following verses indicate that no bones were 
broken and he was still able to talk, but he must have been badly bruised and, 
no doubt, was bleeding.  He would have soon been beaten to death had not the 
Roman soldiers arrived when they did.  
	Technically, it was the Roman captain and his Roman soldiers who rescued 
Paul.  But behind the scenes it was the providence and power of God to the 
rescue.  God still wanted Paul to go to the city of Rome and carry the gospel 
message there.  So it was God who arranged for the Roman captain to get the 
message in time to make the rescue and it was God who arranged to bring the 
captain on the scene just in the nick of time to save Paul from being killed.  
Isn’t it great how God works?  God has never been know to be late.  God is 
always there just at the right minute.  

V.  The real opposition

	When Paul was meeting with James and the elders of the church at 
Jerusalem, it was thought that the Christian brethren were the problem for Paul.  
And they were the potential problem.  They had believed false rumors about Paul 
and they were hopping mad about what they had heard.  But as it turned out, the 
Christian Jews were not the real problem.  
	When the Jews from Asia spotted Paul in the temple and cried out to incite 
a mob against him it would seem that they were the real problem.  They were a 
problem.  They were a huge problem.  They almost caused Paul to loose his life.  
But even they were not the real problem.  That is, they were not the chief 
problem.  
	The Devil was the real problem.  It was the Devil who hated Paul.  It was 
the Devil who wanted Paul to be killed.  The Devil hated Paul and wanted Paul to 
be killed because Paul told lost sinners they could be saved by repenting of 
their sin and trusting Jesus Christ to save their soul.  The Devil had much 
rather have people to believe that they can be saved by their own good works.  
The Devil knows that as long as a sinner is depending on his own good works to 
get him into heaven that sinner is still lost and headed for the fires of hell.  
The Devil has stood in opposition to the gospel message down through the years.  
He  was against Paul and wanted to see Paul killed.  He had been against all who 
seek to spread the good news that a lost sinner can trust Jesus and be saved by 
the grace of God.  
	The Devil is still an enemy of the gospel message.  He still seeks to keep 
people from hearing the gospel.  Then if they do hear the gospel anyway, he 
seeks to blind their minds so that they will refuse to believe it. 
	But the truth of the matter is that Jesus Christ is the only hope that the 
lost sinner has of staying out of hell.  Jesus Christ is the only hope that the 
lost sinner has of going to heaven.  
	If you are lost and on your road to hell then Jesus Christ is your only 
hope of being saved.  You cannot be saved by keeping the Law of Moses.  You 
cannot be saved by keeping the Ten Commandments.  You cannot be saved by turning 
over a new leaf and trying to do what is right.  You cannot be saved by being 
honest and paying your bills.  You cannot be saved by giving to the poor and 
needy.  You cannot be saved by being baptized and joining a church.  You cannot 
be saved by working for the church.  You can only be saved by calling on Jesus 
Christ and asking Him to have mercy on your soul.  You can only be saved by 
trusting Jesus and Jesus only to save your soul and keep you out of hell.